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PETE TITTL: If you're rarin' for Bavarian, try this

BY PETE TITTL, Contributing columniste-mail:
ptittl@bakersfield.com | Wednesday, Nov 18 2009 04:35 PM

Last Updated Wednesday, Nov 18 2009 04:35 PM

It's easy to forget about Bit of Germany on the east side because German cuisine doesn't get the kind of universal respect reserved for, say, French and Chinese cuisine. It doesn't have the cool quotient of California cuisine. It's just European and, like Mexican food, possibly unfairly downgraded for not having exquisite sauces.

Nonetheless, we visited recently at dinner time and were reminded why we have held this family owned restaurant in high regard in the past. We revisited not because a new and exciting menu had been unveiled but because people who crave German food need to know where to get it. It is a place for the adventurous diner eager to sample things like schnitzel (German pasta -- a personal favorite, and the version here is first-rate) and red cabbage (something I've never been able to understand, even during a childhood spent living with all the Germans in Milwaukee). And owner Fran Earhart has been in the business for 30 years now.

We ordered the rouladen special ($11), the bratwurst plate ($10.50) and the Jagerschnitzel ($16.50), one of the specialty dishes. Rouladen is something of a family specialty, though my father's recipe long ago discarded the miniature pickle in the center. Basically, it's round steak wrapped around sauteed onions and bacon and cooked in a pressure cooker to tenderize it. Sounds elemental, but it's a wonderful combination of flavors. The authentic version here (with the tiny pickle at the center) is a real crowd pleaser, the waitress assured us, and I can understand why. If you're a meat-eater, the combination of flavors (the smokiness of the bacon, the natural marriage of the beef and the onion) is seductive. And no one else even serves rouladen. It's like a lost dish.

Bratwurst was once an obscure sausage most likely to be found in Wisconsin until John Madden began talking about it incessantly on NFL broadcasts (that and turducken, which I still haven't tried). Anyway this pork sausage with its odd spice mix (it varies like curry in Indian cuisine, but typically includes marjoram, cumin, nutmeg and coriander) is more commonly available now (Johnsonville sausage company of Wisconsin sells nationwide now, even at Vons and Albertsons locally), but my companion enjoyed his plate of this with sauerkraut (of course).

Even with all that, the star was the schnitzel, one of the house specialties: thin pork cutlets with a mushroom gravy that might even impress a few French palates. It was served with steamed broccoli and pan-fried potatoes, which were quickly gobbled up by my companions.

The salad beforehand was weak, with a few carrot shavings and a small plate. I was not impressed with the dessert we ordered, the apple strudel with ice cream ($3.50). I've had great apple strudel locally (I believe from Alpine Pastries once, just south of White Lane), but this version seemed too moist, probably from an excessive sentence in a refrigerator case.

Service was really personable and inviting, though the crowd was light on the night we visited. I'd heard that lunch business was more crowded and nights are thinner. Not a bad trend to exploit as I don't work near the restaurant and a day drive would be too time-consuming.